Railroad car drawbar



May 5, 1959 J. R. DEsNoY'ERs RAILROAD CAR DRAWBAR 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 31, 1956 Fig.4

Joseph R. Des/1o yers INVENTOR.

United States Patent RAILROAD CAR DRAWBAR Joseph R. Desnoyers, Dearborn, Mich, assignor of fifty percent to Doris Desnoyers, Dearborn, Mich.

Application July 31, 1956, Serial No. 601,282

2 Claims. (Cl. 213-120) I The present inveniton relates to new and useful improvements in car couplers of a horizontally swinging automatically coupling knuckle type.

An important object of the invention is to improve the coupler construction to provide a tight interlocking connection so as to reduce play in the coupling, and to reduce damage to the cars by maintaining the coupler in wide open coupling position either with identical couplers or with couplers of other types.

Another object is to provide pivoted and slidable latch means for locking the knuckle in closed position, also manually operated releasing means for the latch means;--and spring means for opening the knuckle and maintaining the knuckle in open position after the latch is released.

A further object is to provide a coupler construction in which the knuckles are firmly held in interlocked relation to prevent either endwise or lateral play between the couplers.

A still further object is to provide a car coupler of simple and practical construction, which is eflicient and reliable in operation, strong and durable, relatively inexpensive to manufacture and otherwise well adapted for the purpose for which the same is intended.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure l is a top plan view of companion couplers in coupled position;

Figure 2 is an enlarged horizontal longitudinal sectional view thereof;

Figure 3 is an enlarged horizontal longitudinal sectional view of one of the couplers in open position;

Figure 4 is a bottom plan view of one of the couplers and showing the latch releasing lever;

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken on the line S5 of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of Figure 3;

Figure 7 is a similar view showing the knuckle closed as if another coupler is engaged with it;

Figures 8 and 9 are enlarged sectional views taken respectively on the lines 8-8 and 9--9 of Figure 7 showing the coupler structure as it would appear when two couplers are engaged;

Figure 10 is a sectional view taken on a line 10-10 of Figure 9;

Figure ll is a sectional view taken on a line 1111 of Figure 8; and

Figure 12 is a perspective view of the latch.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, wherein for the purpose of illustration I have disclosed a preferred embodiment of my invention, the numerals 5 and 6 designate a pair of automatically interlockable coupling members of duplicate construction and accordingly a detailed description of one will sufiiice for both.

Each coupling member includes a drawbar 7 attached to a car in the usual manner and having a draw head 8 thereon of hollow construction and open at its outer end.

A knuckle is designated generally at 9 and includes. a hub portion 10 having a bore 11 therein to receive a bolt and nut 12 on which the knuckle is pivoted for horizontal swinging movement. The bolt and nut is carried in a pair of vertically spaced apart lugs 13 and 14 at the upper and lower surfaces respectively of draw head 8 and between which hub 10 is positioned and the opposing faces of the lugs are formed with annular bearing portions 15 and 16 which are respectively conformably fitted in annular recesses 17 and 18 at the opposite ends of hub 10.

A substantially flat jaw 19 is integrally formed with hub 10 and projects tangentially with respect to the latter and is swingable inwardly and outwardly at the open front end of the draw head by the pivotal movement of the knuckle. A pair of crescent-shaped arms 20 and 21 are also integrally formed with hub 10 and are spaced vertically one above the other inside the draw head. A lug 22 projects rearwardly from the free end portion of one of the arms and is engaged by the front end of a coil spring 23 which has its rear endinserted in a recess 24 at the rear portion of the draw head to swing the knuckle forwardly into anopen position with the jaw 19 projecting at a forwardly inclined angle, as shown in Figure 3.

A latch member 30 of bell crank shape is formed at its central portion with a vertical bore 31 to receive a vertical pin 32 adjacent the open front of the draw head for vertical sliding movement as well as horizontal swinging movement of the latch on the pin. The latch includes a front channel shaped arm 33 which projects in overlapping relation with respect to arms 20 and 21 and with the flanges 34 and 35 of arms 33 movable vertically into and out of edgewise alignment with the respective arms 20 and 21. The web portion 36 of arm 33 is formed with an opening 37 to accommodate the tips of the arms 20 and 21 when the flanges 34 and 35 are moved vertically to permit passage of arms 20 and 21 therebetween and when the knuckle is swung forwardly into open position, as shown in Figure 3.

The latch 30 also includes a rear arm 38 positioned substantially at a angle with respect to front arm 33 and which overlies a substantially bell-crank releasing lever 39 which is pivoted on a pin 40 at the underside of the draw head. The lever 39 includes an upper arm 41 which extends upwardly through an opening 42 in the bottom of the draw head to engage the rear arm 38 of the latch 30 and a lower arm 43 extends downwardly from the lever 39 for manually actuating the latter. The upper end of arm 41 of lever 39 enters a concaved recess 44 at the underside of the latch to provide a cam action between the lever and the latch to facilitate raising movement of the latch by the lever.

A lug 45 is formed at the front portion of the draw head to project into the opening 37 of the latch and the lug is formed with an upwardly sloping cam surface 46 on which a cam surface 47 on the latch rides to raise the latch as the latter swings forwardly into its releasing position. A stationary sloping cam 48 is also formed in the bottom of the draw head on which the underside of the latch rides to also raise the latch.

The rear of the latch is formed with a stop lug 50 which strikes the inside of the draw head to check the inward movement of the latch after reaching its locking position.

In the operation of the coupler, the knuckle 9 is swung into its open position by spring 23, as shown in Figure 3, and the forward pressure of arms 20 and 21 against the flanges 34 and 35 of latch 30 will also swing the latch forwardly and the cam'surfaces 46, 47 48 and 49 on theeam 48 will raise the latch to clear the arms 20 and 21 from the flanges 34 35 to permit oponiiig movement of the knuckle. i I

The approach of the companion couplers 5 and 6 toward each other will cause the forwardly projecting jaw 19 of one to strike the latch arm 30 of the other coupler to swing the latch and knuckle of eachcoupler inwardly to interlock the jaws of the two couplerswith each other, as shown in Figure 2, and as the latches swing inwardly to clear the related cam surfaces thelatches will gravitate into a position to move the flanges and 35 o! the latches into edge'wise alignment with the arms Maud 21 or the knuckles to prevent forward movement of the latter in an opening movement. The jaw one side of said head for horizontal swinging of said jaw into" and from a closed position in which said jaw extends transversely of the head, a pair of vertically spaced superposed arms on said hub extending radially therefrom behind said ja'w, a bellcrank latch pivoted in said head at the opposite side thereof for horizontal swinging and vertical slidingngoyement, said latch normally gravitating into a lowered normal position, a channeled said second arm to slide said latch upwardly.

of one knuckle is held closely against the latch arm 30 of the other coupler to mutually lock the latches and knuckles from opening movement.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, sincenumerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the. art, it is not desired to limit theinvention to the exact construction and operation shownand described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope o! the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as iollowjsr l. A car coupler comprising a hollow draw head open at its front, a knuckle including a flat vertical jaw in front of said head having a hub pivotally mounted in 2 The combination of claim .1, said jaw in its closed position and said channeled arm in the normal position of the latch being parallel and laterally spaced apart to lockably engage. a complemental jaw inserted therebetween.

Cited in the file of this patent UNI S ATES PA ENTS 

